The Buxom Gossip
The usually reliable Guardian have some interesting tidbits on Manchester United's latest bid to sign a Barcelona midfielder. According to the newspaper, David Moyes is interested in forming a 'FF' partnership in midfield newspaper which would see Cesc Fabregas paired with Marouane Fellaini. The Reds manager apparently wants at least one of his midfielders 'to be able to contribute goals, which Fabregas has proved he can do in the Premier League when at his former club, Arsenal. Fellaini also has an eye for goal; he scored 12 times for Everton last season.' That added to the report that United's failure to close the deal for Thiago Alcantara was due to Moyes fearing 'he might struggle on occasion to cope with the physicality of the Premier League' is a worrying sign for Manchester United fans fearing their new manager has a level of subtlety which is equivalent to a pair of very large breasts.
That creative midfield players like Fabregas need to score goals is one of the great English footballing myths which has been mistakenly perpetuated due to the success of Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard. None of the best game-controlling pivots from the last ten years like Andrea Pirlo, Xavi, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Xabi Alonso and to a lesser extent Luka Modric are known for being particularly prolific. Obviously, scoring goals is valuable regardless of position, but as John Giles has pointed out on many occasions, a midfielder looking to score by going ahead of the ball is a hindrance more than a help for a team, that will then loses their creativity from a deeper position. Fellaini may be who Moyes has in mind as his 'designated midfield goalscorer' but as his many fantasy owners know, the goals dried up for the Belgian after he was moved back to the engine room in the second half of last season.
The case of Modric and indeed Fabregas, should also surely have dispelled any doubts that small, willowy technical players can't succeed on a wet night at the Britannia or at any of the other nineteen Premier League grounds. If Alcantara is the world-class talent that all the evidence so far would indicate he is, history would suggest the physicality of the English game is not going to a be a significant barrier to his progression.
Luis Suarez's transfer from Liverpool to Real Madrid is still at the phoney war stage despite the Reds preparing to finally 'receive the formal bid they know is coming - the indications in Spain are that it will finally arrive in the next few days.' However a 'player plus cash deal' apparently does not equate to the 'Battle of Britain' with Liverpool still refusing to engage the Spanish giants. The Mirror report that 'Sources close to Real are hinting the Bernabeu outfit are ready to offer striker Gonzalo Higuain - who, not co-incidentally is a long-term target for Arsenal, who are also being linked with Suarez - plus around £10million in cash.'
Clearly Britain's tabloids have now purchased one of those machines which were used to predict the future in Minority Report as the newspaper claim Liverpool are not interested in the Argentine forward and will reject a bid that has not even happened yet. Ultimately there is a reasonable chance that Brendan Rogers' side are caught in the middle of a game of brinkmanship between Los Blancos and Arsenal which will ultimately see Higuain head to 'Norf' London and Suarez to Madrid.
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